Flowerpot Cake

Tools:
2 6" round cake pans
2 5" round cake pans
parchment paper
2 cardboard rounds
foil and straws
flowers
Cake Layers:
3 cups and 1.5 T cake flour
5/8 cup unsifted cocoa powder
1/2 T baking soda
1/2 T baking powder
1/2 t salt
21.5 T unsalted butter, at room temperature
1.5 cups sugar
5/8 cup packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
15 oz sour cream
Coffee Buttercream Frosting:
2 egg whites
6 oz butter, softened
4 T hot milk
2 t vanilla essence
2 T instant coffee granules
a pinch of salt
4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
red food coloring
1 cup crushed chocolate wafers
>how to make<
(for cake)
*Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
*Prepare cake pans with cooking spray and parchment paper.
*Sift together all the flour ingredients, and set aside.
*Put butter in the bowl of standmixer, and cream butter on medium-high speed.
*Add the sugars gradually, and beat until light and fluffy.
*Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping the bowl.
*Add the dry ingredients and the sour cream alternately in 3 separate batches.
*Scrape down the bowl a few times during mixing.
*The batter will be a pale cocoa color.
*Scrape the batter into the pans and smooth the tops with a small spatula.
*Bake for about 45 minutes.
*When the cake is done,cool and wrap with plastic wrap.
(for frosting)
*Blend all the ingredients except for sugar.
*Gradually mix in the sugar until smooth.
*Add a small amount of food color to achieve a terra-cotta shade.
(for assembling)
*Trim one 5" cake to 4.5" cake, and trim one 6" cake to 5.5" cake.
*Put the smallest cake onto the double cardboard rounds and spread the frosting.
*Put the next smallest cake on top of it and spread the frosting.
*Repeat this process one more time and put the largest cake on top.
*Refrigerate the cake layers until the filling has set about 30 minutes.
*Frost the cake, then refrigerate to chill the frosting about 20 minutes.
*Frost the cake a second time.
*Sprinkle the crushed chocolate wafers on top, leaving the lip of the flowerpot.
*Cut plastic straws into short length, and insert them into the cake.
*Wrap the stem of each flower with foil and insert them into the straws.
*You may add some leaves in between.
-makes 10-
Labels: chocolate cake layer recip, coffee buttercream frosting recipe, flowerpot cake recipe
Valentine Cake in Ice Cream Cone
1 1/4 cake flour
2 T unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 t white vinegar
a few drops red food coloring
3/4 cup sugar
4 T unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large eggs, at room temperature
12 ice cream cones
1 cup whipping cream
1/6 sugar
some red confetti and colored sugar
>how to make<
*Preheat the oven at 375 degrees.
*Sift together the cake flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt into a bowl.
*In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, vanilla, vinegar, and red food coloring.
*In another bowl, using an electric mixer on medium high speed, beat the sugar and butter together until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
*Mix in an egg.
*Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the buttermilk mixture in 2 additions, beating on low speed until combined; scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
*Using an ice cream scoop or large spoon, drop rounded spoonfuls of batter into each cone.
*Place the ice cream cones in a muffin tin, one cone per cup.
(To keep the filled cones from tipping, scrunch a piece of foil in the bottom of each muffin tin and wedge the cone inside it.
*Very gently, place the muffin pan into the oven (these cones want to fall.).
*Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.
*Cool completely.
*Whip cream with sugar in a bowl.
*Generously top with whipped cream, and decorate as desired.
-serves 12-
Note: Red Velvet Cupcake recipe was modified from "Cupcakes" by Shelly Kaldunski, and the idea of Ice Cream Cone Cake came from "Cake Spy" by Jessie Oleson.
Labels: Ice Cream Cone cake, Red velvet cupcake recipe, Valentine Cake idea